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access_fandom2013-09-13 08:27 pm
sqbr) wrote in access_fandom2013-09-13 08:27 pm
Entry tags:
Best approach to accessible versions of Visual Novels
I make the odd visual novel (both original and fannish): interactive games told through text and static images (mostly of sprites with varying expressions). Some use sound but mine don't. As an example, here's a fan game I made for Mass Effect.
It bothers me how inaccessible my Visual Novels are given that the story is mostly told via text. The creator of Renpy (the language I and many VN creators use) has said he would add text reader support if he could but it's not practical.
So I was wondering: if you are someone who finds visual novels innaccessible but would otherwise be interested in playing them, what would be your preferred approach to an accessible version of the story?
The options that I can think of:
1)add voices:
Pros: Requires very little extra programming and keeps the interactivity
Cons: only counteracts visual problems. I'm not sure how you'd deal with buttons or interactive screens. Recording all that dialogue would take a lot of work and memory.
2) Add translations/different text colours and sizes etc as requested:
Pros: Relatively easy to do, lets the player experience the game as intended.
Cons: only helps people with very specific needs.
3)A "novelisation" of the major paths:
Pros: No coding! Very accessible. If done properly could create a new spinoff with it's own appeal, or could just be a slightly altered version of the script.
Cons: Loses all the interactivity. Requires a lot of extra writing to become a proper story.
4)A "let's play" type novelisation which describes the choices you can make and their consequences as you go:
Pros: Less work and more true to the original than a proper novelisation.
Cons: More work than a plain script. Breaks the fourth wall and may throw people out of the story, still can't fully capture the interactive experience.
5) Port the game to a more accessible interactive fiction language:
Pros: Keeps most of the interactive experience.
Cons: Requires a LOT of work, and may not be possible if the game uses langauge specific tools or relies a lot on images.
In all cases there would be image descriptions and maybe screenshots where it added to the story.
I think adding voices is not a good solution. I am quite happy to do minor colour etc changes as requested and generally try to use readable colours and large text, and if anyone gave me a translation I'd try to figure out how to include it (I think you can do patches for that sort of thing)
I'm inclined to go for a novelisation approach since it's simple and I like writing prose, but if there was enough interest might investigate porting a game to a more accessible language. Twine seems pretty accessible (being plain HTML) and Inform 7 is apparently accessible not only for players but for coders. Here's a tiny game I wrote in Twine, and here's some info on Inform 7 games. I think Twine is better suited to the kinds of games I write.
So! Am I missing anything? Do people have any preferences?
It bothers me how inaccessible my Visual Novels are given that the story is mostly told via text. The creator of Renpy (the language I and many VN creators use) has said he would add text reader support if he could but it's not practical.
So I was wondering: if you are someone who finds visual novels innaccessible but would otherwise be interested in playing them, what would be your preferred approach to an accessible version of the story?
The options that I can think of:
1)add voices:
Pros: Requires very little extra programming and keeps the interactivity
Cons: only counteracts visual problems. I'm not sure how you'd deal with buttons or interactive screens. Recording all that dialogue would take a lot of work and memory.
2) Add translations/different text colours and sizes etc as requested:
Pros: Relatively easy to do, lets the player experience the game as intended.
Cons: only helps people with very specific needs.
3)A "novelisation" of the major paths:
Pros: No coding! Very accessible. If done properly could create a new spinoff with it's own appeal, or could just be a slightly altered version of the script.
Cons: Loses all the interactivity. Requires a lot of extra writing to become a proper story.
4)A "let's play" type novelisation which describes the choices you can make and their consequences as you go:
Pros: Less work and more true to the original than a proper novelisation.
Cons: More work than a plain script. Breaks the fourth wall and may throw people out of the story, still can't fully capture the interactive experience.
5) Port the game to a more accessible interactive fiction language:
Pros: Keeps most of the interactive experience.
Cons: Requires a LOT of work, and may not be possible if the game uses langauge specific tools or relies a lot on images.
In all cases there would be image descriptions and maybe screenshots where it added to the story.
I think adding voices is not a good solution. I am quite happy to do minor colour etc changes as requested and generally try to use readable colours and large text, and if anyone gave me a translation I'd try to figure out how to include it (I think you can do patches for that sort of thing)
I'm inclined to go for a novelisation approach since it's simple and I like writing prose, but if there was enough interest might investigate porting a game to a more accessible language. Twine seems pretty accessible (being plain HTML) and Inform 7 is apparently accessible not only for players but for coders. Here's a tiny game I wrote in Twine, and here's some info on Inform 7 games. I think Twine is better suited to the kinds of games I write.
So! Am I missing anything? Do people have any preferences?